Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2024 - South Carolina

The purpose of CIG is to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies in conjunction with agricultural production in the United States and its territories. CIG projects are expected to lead to the transfer of conservation technologies, management systems, and innovative approaches (such as market-based systems) to agricultural producers, into government technical manuals and guides, or to the private sector. CIG generally funds pilot projects, field demonstrations, and on-farm conservation research. On-farm conservation research is defined as an investigation conducted to answer a specific applied conservation question using a statistically valid design while employing farm-scale equipment on farms, ranches or private forest lands.

The CIG program is not a NRCS producer financial assistance program. Project outcomes should benefit a region of a state or the entire state and not just benefit one farm.

NRCS will prioritize projects that will implement climate-smart agriculture conservation activities which are targeted to assist agricultural producers and nonindustrial private forestland owners in directly improving soil carbon, reducing nitrogen losses, or reducing, capturing, avoiding, or sequestering carbon dioxide, methane, or nitrous oxide emissions, associated with agricultural production.

All CIG projects must involve EQIP-eligible producers that meet EQIP's eligibility requirements listed in 7 CFR 1466.6(b)(1) through (3).